India, Jan. 20 -- A UP-Irrigation Department letter to the Noida Authority flagged the need to construct head regulators to flush out accumulated rain and drain water in Sector 150, Noida, where a software engineer died after his car plunged into a water-filled pit. However, the project was never taken up.

Locals who carried out protest marches said the tragedy could have been avoided if the proposed head regulators been constructed, as the accumulated water would have been flushed out instead of stagnating at the site.

A head regulator regulates water flow and prevents excess silt in a drain or canal. When contacted, a Noida Authority official on Monday said he was not aware of the letter from the Irrigation Department, which was acces...